Drinking in Season: Peach and Rosemary Cocktail

Soft and fuzzy to the touch, blushed with hues of orange, pink, and red, peaches are in season and I'm loving it. The market is flush with juicy, fragrant white and yellow peaches that are bursting with flavor. Since they're such a tender fruit, peaches should be handled with care—as our farmers say, a squeeze today creates a bruise tomorrow—and eaten with a day or two of purchase. With a lonely peach still sitting on my counter a few days after I bought it, it was a do or die situation (for the peach that is). A cocktail, sweet from peach juice, herbal from rosemary syrup and perfectly boozy from bourbon, was just the answer to this problem.

Ripe, almost squishy peaches work great for this cocktail, since the peaches will be muddled anyway and you're looking to get as much peach juice as possible. To balance out the sweet and tangy flavor of the peaches, rosemary syrup brings a little sophistication and an herbal note that meanders through each sip. Bourbon complements the juiciness of the peaches while bringing more depth to the cocktail. The result is a classic-tasting cocktail with a fresh seasonal spin.

Something tells me you might want to stock on peaches next week.

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About the Author: Kelly Carámbula blogs about her adventures in the kitchen, including a weekly happy hour, on The Best Remedy. She is also the founder and publisher of Remedy Quarterly, an independent food magazine.